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Waiting for the Next Episode of The Lottery? Try These Read-Alikes!

Thu, 07/31/2014 - 11:44am — admin

Two weeks ago, The Lottery premiered on Lifetime, captivating viewers like myself with its grim premise. In the show, the year is 2025 and women are no longer able to get pregnant and give birth. When a medical team succeeds in fertilizing 100 embryos, the government announces a lottery to select the surrogates. With intriguing characters who have secret agendas and plenty of suspense, The Lottery is off to a promising start. And if you’re like me and are already hooked and wanting more, here’s a list of books you should check out to make the wait for new episodes a bit more bearable.

What It’s About: Part dystopian, part fantasy tale, Ewing’s debut stars Violet, a teenage girl trained to become a surrogate for the royalty who can no longer get pregnant and who want perfect children with unique abilities. When Violet is sold to the Duchess of the Lake, her life takes a dark turn and she must fight to reclaim the freedom that was stolen from her.

Why You Should Read It: This is such a strong debut and is full of surprises. Ewing has created an engrossing and grim world that will keep readers both curious and afraid. Be sure to read it when it releases on September 2nd!

What It’s About: In a world of declining births, Offred serves as a Handmaid to the Commander and his wife. Once a month, she must have sex with the Commander and prays to get pregnant. Offred used to have an adoring husband and a beautiful daughter. She used to have money and freedom. But all of that is in the past and now she’s only as good as her ovaries.

Why You Should Read It: While I haven’t had a chance to read this yet, it’s considered a classic in dystopian fiction and many books are pitched as “The Handmaid’s Tale meets … ”, which just makes my curiosity even stronger.

The Registry by Shannon Stoker

What It’s About: After receiving a warning from her married sister, eighteen-year-old Mia Morrissey begins questioning everything she knows about her life and the Registry, the system that keeps America stable by auctioning girls off as brides and training boys as soldiers. Desperate to maintain her freedom, Mia decides to flee to Mexico. But with the government, soldiers and a man who will stop at nothing to get her back all after her, will Mia succeed or will she fall?

Why You Should Read It: This New Adult-ish book has flown a bit under the radar, but has earned some pretty rave reviews, making it a top pick for my To-Be-Read pile. I'm really interested in seeing how Stoker establishes her dystopian society and to see what warning Mia's sister gives her. I'm like, "Tell me! Tell me!", so I suppose this should be my next read.

What It’s About: Girls over the age of eighteen are infertile, resulting would-be parents to pay teens to have their children. Pregnant teens become the most prized members of society. The story revolves around twins Harmony and Melody, who have never met until Harmony tracks down Melody. Melody, raised in a religious community, is determined to convince Harmony to not pursue the contraception contract she’s been offered. And when Melody is matched, a case of mistaken identities send the girls on a new path where they uncover even more secrets.

Why You Should Read It: I used to be a bookseller and this was one of our most popular series, which kind of surprised me because the book, in my opinion, kind of came out of nowhere and was an instant win.

Let us know which dystopian books are your favorites and which ones you think fans of The Lottery will love! And be sure to watch the show Sundays at 10/9c on Lifetime right after Witches of East End! For more dystopian reads, visit our Everything Sci-Fi page.

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